The Cuban economist Pedro Monreal published an analysis on Horizonte Cubano, in which he warns about the risks of corruption and the capture of public assets posed by the process of transferring state assets currently being carried out by CIMEX, a corporation belonging to the military conglomerate GAESA.
Monreal points out that CIMEX has called for bids on commercial premises and cooperative production contracts with food processing entities, with deadlines of just seven business days for submitting proposals.
The economist does not hesitate to describe this detail as a warning sign. "The deadlines disclosed, of only seven business days, restrict competition, drastically reduce the number of actual bidders, and favor those with privileged information or contacts," he warned.
The process is based on Article 28.1 of the , a central regulation of the package of 176 economic transformation measures approved by the National Assembly in June 2026 and effective since September 9. This article expressly authorizes state-owned enterprises to sell assets, transfer them as investments, or monetize them through leases with national economic actors or foreign investors.
According to the economist's analysis, CIMEX employs two methods to transfer operational control without relinquishing formal ownership: the leasing of premises and cooperative production contracts. Both modalities present risks of capture: leases that transform into permanent de facto control, accumulation of premises among a few beneficiaries, and undervaluation of state contributions in cooperative contracts.
The opacity of the process is exacerbated because GAESA is not subject to audit by the General Comptroller of the Republic, a fact confirmed by the Cuban regime itself.
The CIMEX tenders have already been documented in several provinces. In Sancti Spíritus, 12 establishments were offered in July 2026, and in Holguín, 13 units were called, including the Bim Bom ice cream factory and the Doña Nelly bakery, under the cooperative production model. Other state chains like Palmares and Tiendas Caribe have followed similar paths in Havana and Santiago de Cuba.
Monreal is emphatic that his concern is not the expansion of the private sector itself, but rather who benefits from the process and under what rules.
"What is concerning is that those who claim to defend a socialist economy are using the cession of state assets to consolidate the economic power of officials, 'trusted' entrepreneurs, and front men."
The economist, who in June 2026 described the 176 measures as a "monster" due to their lack of structural coherence, proposes in his new analysis a set of corrective measures that involve defining "restricted subjects," including members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, the Council of Ministers, and executives of GAESA who cannot benefit from these tenders during their term or in the ten years following; establishing a minimum deadline of 30 business days to submit bids; requiring independent appraisals; and creating a public registry of awards identifying the ultimate beneficiaries.
"The problem is not the transition to an economy with greater private participation, but rather that it could rely, at least in part, on the plundering of public assets," concludes Monreal.
Moreover, it warns that regulatory laxity can lead to "a crony capitalism, where privileged access to public assets, information, and discretionary decisions replaces open competition," or to a state capitalism where centers of political and military power retain strategic control while outsourcing management to select networks of private actors.
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